The very first element of Columbus McKinnon’s Intelli-Crane suite

The very first element of Columbus McKinnon’s Intelli-Crane suite of digital motion handle systems, Intelli-Protect, was introduced earlier this coming year, with the next—Intelli-Lift— owing for launch this thirty days.

While Intelli-Protect can set up ‘no-fly zones’ for cranes, Intelli-Lift can prevent side-lifting and side-pulling. One key differential offered by the Intelli-Crane suite is that it usually is installed as ‘ready-made automation’, rather than requiring a full custom automation system being developed. It’s also designed to be extremely user-friendly. These characteristics offer a selection of advantages, says Jim Kluck, world wide product manager for settings and automation at Columbus McKinnon.

“Columbus McKinnon’s Magnetek brand have been offering automation for years, ” says Kluck. “Now, that advancement of user interfaces as well as software, particularly the development of personal devices like smartphones, can bring it for the masses. Our customers were looking for opportunities to do a lot more, so we developed Intelli-Crane.

“Larger businesses, and those in bigger industries for example metals and paper production, have come to people to develop automated dealing with systems. Columbus McKinnon wished to take automation to most people, including smaller companies— to provide solutions that everyone can established and operate, even devoid of PLC programming experience. As well as for any training requirements, software updates and so forth, customers can come to be able to us. ”

“With the retirement of your experienced workforce, there is usually a need for products that suit the skills of a more photoshop driven generation. Plus, now above ever, companies are having to do more with a reduced amount of. This means workers think you are tasked with more do the job, less specialized job duties, and sometimes have minimal training, ” says Kluck. “With automatic technology, workers have built-in safety features that earn their jobs easier along with safer, while enabling easily repeatable processes—all which help avoid costly down time. ”

The different techniques within Intelli- Crane are usually modular, which is the place that the ready-made automation concept is available in. Each component has a significant part number and price and can be built and delivered within two weeks, states Kluck, reducing project lead moments by 2–3 months with a year. The degree of pre-engineering also makes that technology economical, as well as being easy to set up: it can be done using a personal device such as a possible iPad.

The systems are nevertheless built to order as much as a point, though; customers have flexibility inside the design of each method, including the choice of components used. Specific requirements or components is often included through the engineered-to-order procedure.

Using smart devices to access the Intelli- Crane suite means that programming and troubleshooting can be achieved from the plant floorboards, while the hoist is near the roof of the facility—improving safety by eliminating the need to access an increased control panel.

The Intelli-Protect program also enhances safety, by preventing cranes through travelling over certain elements of the factory floor or colliding with permanent elements of your facility. Outside a protected no-fly zone can be a stop zone, and outdoor that, a slow-down area.

“It can help the operator as long as they are moving a large load with reduced precense, ” says Kluck, “or should the operator has a loss of experience or skills.

“The user can configure the dimensions of each one zone, as well since adding and removing specific zones, and can add ‘walls’ over that your crane must travel in a certain height, with an operational area at the center. The zones can be updated since the plant floor changes, and also the system can be inept temporarily if required, for instance, for maintenance. ”

This is done from the plant floor, as stated. “There are two means of inputting the coordinates from the no-fly zones, ” affirms Kluck. “The ‘Teach’ mode enables the operator to move the crane to the extremities of each zone, which are then logged by the system. The ‘Manual’ mode can be utilized if the operator knows the dimensions belonging to the areas in question. ”

This kind of month, the company launched the following part of the Intelli-Crane selection, called Intelli-Lift. This resolution, says Kluck, is made to prevent side-lifting and area pulling; that is, a lift performed with the hoist not aligned vertically above the load, creating swing which could damage nearby items, along with potentially damaging the crane as well as hoist. It also takes up snagging, which is an individual issue in the motor industry when moving cease to live sets from die discipline to press, if one of the attached chains does certainly not detach.

The system is integrated to the crane controls and can produce one of two results if an off-center move is detected.

‘Detection’ won’t slow down the crane movement, instead it is going to alert the operator having a visual indicator, whereas ‘Prevention’ stops the crane from lifting the load prior to hoist is adjusted to the correct position, either immediately or manually.

An accompanying status light box uses four lights, to the cardinal direction points, to indicate which direction the hoist has to move to align with the load. A by-pass function—used any time, for example, turning or flipping a die fixed for cleaning, says Kluck—is also indicated by the light when activated, to circumvent it from being quit on inadvertently, for illustration, during shift changes.

The Intelli-Protect and Intelli-Lift systems is also the first two automated solutions inside the Intelli-Crane suite, with even more installments planned, including diagnostics plus analytics software, and an auto-dispatch system, Intelli-Guide, regarding moving a crane immediately from point to place.
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